28 October 2014

Comic Con London, Geekonomics, Cosplay Business (video)

Comic Con London: Geekonomics and the Cosplay Business: Video - Bloomberg: (Allow video to load after clicking play or go to link above)The power of 'geekonomics' was on display at Comic Con London 2014 over the weekend. More than 120,000 lycra-clad crusaders and devotees of all thing animated flocked to the event, with the gaming and movie industries hoping to cash in. So what's driving this costume-clad economy? Bloomberg went to find out. (Source: Bloomberg Oct 27)Apple Pay Takes On Hackers, Cash - Barron's: "For years, technology companies have set their sights on the payment industry, with each firm wanting a slice of the digital wallet. So Apple ’s plan to partner with the industry’s most established names— Visa (ticker: V), MasterCard, (MA) and American Express (AXP)—came as a surprise when it emerged last month. Apple Pay, officially launched last week, is essentially a high-tech way to access traditional cards issued by big banks. For Visa and MasterCard, it’s just one more conduit to their dominant electronic networks. Despite the efforts of eBay (EBAY) and Google (GOOGL) and start-ups like Square, Silicon Valley couldn’t blow up the traditional ecosystem. “Early adopters in the [digital] space have learned the hard way,” says Jim McCarthy, Visa’s head of innovation and strategic partnerships. “Payments are just hard.” Enlarge Image Apple Pay makes credit-card data less vulnerable to hackers. Photo: Apple Apple’s embrace should give long-term investors confidence about Visa and MasterCard’s highly profitable networks...."New York TimesApple Pay Is Disabled by Rite Aid and CVS as a Rival Makes PlansNew York TimesA demonstration of Apple Pay on its first day last week. ... Nonetheless, over the week,Apple Pay technology was working in Rite Aid and CVS stores.Some US retailers shun Apple Pay, eye rival payments system - ReutersApple, retailers at odds over mobile payments - USA TODAY2 drug chains disable Apple Pay, as a rival makes plans - Boston Globe

New York TimesFacebook Offers Life Raft, but Publishers Are WaryNew York TimesSo while Facebook loves the content, it hates the clunky technology many publishers ... Yes, search from Google still creates inbound interest, and Twitter can spark ... (Amazon's dominance in the book business comes to mind.) ... (All considered, Apple has already pulled off that trick, creating a private ...

Amazon's Fire TV is doing much better than its phoneThis week Amazon announced it would take a $170 million hit due to the ... it may be in a position to stand out from the crowd (Apple TV, Roku, Chromecast). Amazon's pitch to prospective developers -- conveniently timed as we're ... Microsoft is doing great, and so are Surface Pro 3 and Office 365.

CurrentC Is The Big Retailers’ Clunky Attempt To Kill Apple Pay And Credit Card Fees | TechCrunch: ".... The only way CurrentC has a real chance is if it can organize some big discount for all CurrentC payments across retailers. For example, if it said you’d get 5% off for paying with CurrentC, some people might be willing to use it. In the short-term, this would eradicate any savings on credit card fees for the merchants. But eventually, if the app gains a loyal user base it could scale back those fees to start reaping the benefits of sidestepping credit cards. If CurrentC doesn’t offer a vivid value proposition to consumers, its likely to go the way of the dinosaur while Apple Pay pushes the evolution of the rest of the mobile payments industry."Google Pirate Update - Business Insider: "Google has pushed out an update to its search algorithm that is making it even harder for people to discover free movie and music torrents, with sites like Pirate Bay, Isohunt and Torrentz.eu among the worst affected by the rollout..."Amazon Unveils Fire TV Stick in Chromecast Challenge - Businessweek: "Amazon.com Inc. unveiled a media-streaming device that plugs into a TV set to let users browse video and music from Netflix Inc., Hulu LLC and Pandora Media Inc., seeking to extend its reach in customers’ digital lives. The $39 Fire TV Stick plugs into a port on a high-definition television, comes with a remote control and can mirror media content and applications from a user’s phone or tablet, Seattle-based Amazon said today in a statement. The device can be ordered today and will be released on Nov. 19."Wall St. finally turning on Amazon as Bezos magic fades | Reuters: "They're becoming much too distracted in all these other efforts" outside core businesses like online retailing and web services, said Matthew Benkendorf, portfolio manager at Vontobel Asset Management. Benkendorf unloaded his Amazon holdings a year ago and said he would be skeptical of future involvement even if the stock falls further. "They are their own worst enemy to success," he said. "They really need to do some soul searching and get focused."